New charges planned for the Island’s charitable sector could take thousands of dollars from agencies, prompting concerns from the Centre on Philanthropy.

According to a letter from the charity, Commissioner of Police Michael DeSilva has issued a directive for Police to charge a $100 fee to vet staff and volunteers at charities.

The move stands to hit charities that work with children especially hard, according to the Centre.

A Police spokesman responded that the fees were set by the Ministry of Finance, adding: “The current vetting fee of $100 was established through legislative amendment in 2011. The Commissioner of Police does not set Government fees.”

The charge for a Police background check commenced in September 2011.

However, an e-mail from the Centre on Philanthropy to its members suggests charities had been exempted from the charge for the recruitment of both employees and volunteers.

Yesterday’s letter from Elaine Butterfield, the organisation’s executive director, was addressed to Finance Minister Bob Richards and Patricia Gordon-Pamplin, the Minister of Health and Seniors, as well as Mr DeSilva.

Ms Butterfield said the decision presented “serious constraints on the already challenged charitable sector”, writing that it could lead some to cut staff or close entirely.

Many charities could not exist without volunteers, the letter added, and the vetting fee could be as steep as $10,000 in some cases. Increased fees this year “cripple us from providing our most necessary services”, the letter continued, urging for the decision to be reversed, or the charge waived for charities that work directly with children.

The charge, said to be effective immediately, hits shortly after the Charities Act brought in a registration fee of $100 to $400, contingent on income.

Domain registration fees have added $60 to the cost of having a website, Ms Butterfield wrote, while payroll tax rose this year to 5.5 per cent. Meanwhile, a 12 per cent increase in government health insurance will add more than $1,714 each month to charities with two or more employees.

“Together, social services providers greatly lessen the burden of the Government to provide a healthy society for our community,” Ms Butterfield wrote, saying there were close to 370 dedicated charities at work on the Island. She added that charities that had to comply with the Vulnerable Persons Policy would be particularly hard-hit.

That policy, introduced last year, required the adoption of best practices in organisations dealing with those considerable vulnerable because of their age, physical or mental ability or ill health.

It requires all employees, volunteers and trustees who would work directly with vulnerable persons to obtain a criminal-background check.

“While recognising that Government has to cut costs, charities are the ones providing the support to those in need and delivering the Government’s social agency,” Ms Butterfield’s letter closed, requesting to have a discussion with the requisite ministries.